A Toddler Dance Party Inspired by Fight Club!

Like so many librarians who hold Toddler (or Preschool) Dance Parties, I run into the problem of the adults not dancing!

Some kids will dance no matter what but others look to see what their grown-up is doing and are too timid to dance on their own (I’m totally one of those kids).  I found that Toddler Dance Party is so much more fun for everyone if the adults are really into and willing to look silly by dancing their butts off.  I always make an announcement before we start by saying “We all have more fun if the grown-ups are dancing too.  And I sure don’t want to be the only adult dancing!”  This works sometimes but usually I still have reluctant adults.

So I decided to get hardcore and start cracking skulls! (in my own sweet way).  I posted this sign on our large screen TV and left it up throughout the Dance Party:

It seemed to inspire them.  I’d estimate about a 25% increase in adult dancers.  I’ll take whatever I can get!

Babies!

A lot of my little friends have new baby siblings so I thought it would be nice to do a storytime celebrating all things baby related!

Welcome song:  I played this song on my ukulele and used my iPad and Apple TV to project the lyrics.

Sign Language:  We learned the sign for “baby” and repeated it often.

First Book:  Ten Little Fingers and Ten Little Toes by Mem Fox

Fingerplay: Baby’s Nap

This is a baby ready for a nap.          (hold up index finger)
Lay him down in his mother’s lap.      (place finger on open palm of other hand)
Cover him up so he won’t peep.     (wrap fingers around finger)
Rock him till he’s fast asleep.         (rock hands back and forth)

(Source: Storytime Katie)

Felt Board:  Five Little Babies

One little baby rocking in a tree      (hold up one finger/rock arms)
Two little babies splashing in the sea      (two fingers/pretend to splash)
Three little babies crawling on the floor      (three fingers/crawl fingers on knee)
Four little babies banging on the door     (four fingers/pretend to knock)
Five little babies playing hide and seek      (five fingers/cover your eyes)
Keep your eyes closed now…until I say…PEEK!      (uncover eyes)

(Source: Perry Public Library)

Second Book:  Babies on the Bus by Karen Katz

Activity:  Baby Faces

I created various baby faces based on ones I found at Mel’s Desk.  I made a bunch of smiling faces, a bunch of sleepy faces, and a bunch of cranky faces.  Next I laminated them and put a small piece of velcro on the back.  During storytime I handed each child a face and asked them to show their grown-up (this is my trick for 1. getting the grown-ups involved and 2. having the grown-ups help their little one wait for his/her turn).

Next we sang the following song and the kids who had the corresponding face could come up and put the baby face in the “crib” (i.e. stick it on the felt board).

“If your baby’s feeling happy come on up,
If your baby’s feeling happy come on up,
If your baby’s feeling happy then it’s time to take a nappy
If your baby’s feeling happy come on up!”   (repeat with “sleepy” and “cranky”)

Third Book:  Baby Parade by Rebecca O’Connell

Music Activity:  Rattles!

I handed out rattles (maracas) to each child and reminded them that babies love to shake rattles.  We shook our rattles along to the song “Run Baby Run” by Casper Babypants.  This song has a bunch of motions for the kids to do (run, jump, spin, clap,…) so it’s perfect for storytime!

Goodbye Song:  I played the “goodbye” version of our welcome song on the uke and projected the lyrics.  It’s a new song so my hope is that the kids will start to learn the words and join in.  Unitl then, I’m relying on the parents to drown out my voice!

Goodbye Rhyme:

Tickle the clouds
Tickle your toes
Turn around
Tickle your nose
Reach down low
Reach up high
Storytime is over
So wave goodbye!

Ninjas

Rhyme Cube: Click here for description.

Sign Language: We learned the sign for “quiet” and repeated it throughout storytime.

First Book:  Ninja! by Arree Chung

Felt Board: Five Little Ninjas

5 little ninjas creeping through the door,
One said HIYAH, and then there were four.
4 little ninjas, climbing up a tree,
One said HIYAH, and then there were three.
3 little ninjas with nothing to do,
One said HIYAH, and then there were two.
2 little ninjas, having so much fun.
One said HIYAH, and then there was one.
1 little ninja, on the run.
He said HIYAH, and then there were none.

(Source: Falling Flannelboards)

Song:  Ninja, Ninja Sneak Around

Ninja, ninja – sneak around.
Ninja, ninja – roll on the ground.
Ninja, ninja – climb up high.
Ninja, ninja – touch the sky.
Ninja, ninja – jump down low.
Ninja, ninja – touch your toe.

(Source: Storytime With Miss Mollie)

Second Book:  Nightime Ninja by Barbara DeCosta

Felt Board:  Ninja Made from Shapes

Do you see a ninja? I do.
To make a ninja, first we need a head.
This one is round and red.
The rectangle will make a space,
Just big enough for a peeking out face.
Next we’ll add two small circles for eyes
And two tiny rectangles, to make our ninja look surprised!

Song: If You’re a Ninja and You Know It!

If you’re a ninja and you know it,
Be really quiet.  (Shhh!)
If you’re a ninja and you know it,
Be really quiet.  (Shhh!)
If you’re a ninja and you know it,
then your face will surely show it.
If you’re a ninja and you know it,
Be really quiet.  (Shhh!)

Contine with:
If you’re a ninja and you know it…walk on tip toe (Tip Toe)
If you’re a ninja and you know it…say HIYAH (HIYAH!)

Third Book:  Ninja, Ninja, Never Stop! by Todd Tuell

Activity:  Ninja Memory Game

You can’t do a ninja themed storytime without at least mentioning the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles!  I decided to incorporate them into a fun matching activity.  I made cards then laminated them and put velcro on each side.  One side of each card had and image of a turtle shell (a different color for each card) and the other side had an image of one of the ninja turtles.  I made sure that I made two Michelangelo’s, two Donatello’s, etc…. so that we could play a matching game.  Here’s some pictures:

I asked the kids which color card I should turn over and we played the memory game until we found all the matches.  I wish I had written the names of each ninja turtle under their faces but didn’t think of that until after I laminated them.  Oh well.

For fun: Ninja Head Bands

Another idea I thought of after the fact:  I created simple ninja head bands out of paper towels.  Next time I do a ninja themed storytime I’ll give one to each kid at the start so we can pretend to be ninjas!

Let’s Dance!

Rhyme Cube:  Click here for description

Sign Language: We learned the sign for “Dance” and repeated throughout the storytime.

First Book: Hilda Must be Dancing by Karma Wilson

Activity:  Jim Gill’s List of Dances

I printed out the List of Dances on brightly colored cardstock.  Next, I cut out and laminated each type of dance and put a piece of velcro on the back.  During the activity, I stuck each laminated card on the felt board and showed the kids how to do that dance.  When I played the song, I pointed to each dance as we did the motions.

Fingerplay:  Dance Your Fingers Up

“Dance your fingers up, dance your fingers down
Dance your fingers to the side, dance them all around
Dance them on your shoulders, dance them on you head
Dance them on your tummy, and put them all to bed”

Second Book:  Cha-Cha Chimps by Julia Durango

Felt Board:  Five Little Ballerinas

5 little ballerinas dancing across the floor,
One twirled away and then there were 4.
4 little ballerinas stretched tall like a tree,
One leaped away and then there were 3.
3 little ballerinas dressed in tutus of bright blue,
One danced away and then there were 2.
2 little ballerinas having lots of fun,
One twirled away and then there was 1.
1 little ballerina dancing all alone,
She danced away and then there were none.

(source: Storytimes with Moxie)

Third Book:  Dancing Feet! by Lindsey Craig

Fingerplay: Thelma Thumb

Thelma Thumb is up! (thumbs up!)
Thelma Thumb is down! (thumbs down)
Thelma Thumb is dancing all around the town! (thumbs wiggle all around)
Dance her on your shoulders, (thumb on shoulders)
Dance her on your head, (thumb on head)
Dance her on your knees (thumb on knees)
And tuck her into bed. (fold thumb in and cover with other fingers)

(Source: Mentor Public Library)

Activity: Jim Gill’s Silly Dance Contest

I gave the kids shakers and we danced along to the Silly Dance Contest.  This is one of my favorite songs to use in storytime because it has moments when the kids have to freeze until the music starts again.  And then they can dance like crazy again!

Goodbye Song:

Tickle the clouds
Tickle your toes
Turn around
Tickle your nose
Reach down low
Reach up high
Storytime is over
So wave goodbye!

Hello and Goodbye Storytime Song

I love the music CD’s by The Learning Groove (Mr. Eric is Eric Litwin. Yes, THE Eric Litwin of Pete the Cat fame).  I use them frequently in my storytimes and Music and Movement programs.

Each of their six CD’s include a great welcome/hello song to the tune of Skip to My Lou (and a goodbye version to the same tune).  I wanted to incorporate the song into my storytimes using my ukuele but had to change the words a little to make it more library-themed.

Here’s what I came up with (to the tune of Skip to My Lou)-
Welcome Song:
Hey hey how do you do?
Hey hey how do you do?
Hey hey how do you do?
It’s time to read a book or two!

Hello children, how are you?
Hello grown-ups, how are you?
I’m fine, hope you are too!
Now let’s read a book or two!

Goodbye Song:
Bye bye we’ll miss you
Bye bye we’ll miss you
Bye bye we’ll miss you
Hope you take a book or two!

Good bye children, we’ll miss you
Good bye grown-ups, we’ll miss you
We’re all friends now, we’ll miss you
Hope you take a book or two!

For the ukulele, you can find various chord combos for Skip to My Lou on the web but I like this one. (because C’s and G7’s are easy!)

My next session of storytime starts in a week and a half and I plan on trying out my new hello/goodbye songs….guess I better start practicing!

Librarians as Media Mentors!

Check out this awesome post from Cen Campbell (founder of Little eLit) on the Fred Roger’s Center blog.  She discusses how and why many Children’s Librarians are embracing the role of “media mentor” for the families they serve!

Boats

Rhyme Cube:  Click here for description.

Sign Language:  Word of the day was “Boat”

Opening Rhyme:

“Open them, shut them,
Give a little clap!
Open them, shut them,
Now put them in your lap!”

First Book:  App – Boats by Byron Barton (Oceanhouse Media)

So I finally have the equipment to do digital storytelling!  Thanks to a generous donation from our Friends group we were able to purchase a 70 inch flat screen TV and an Apple TV.  The Apple TV lets me wirelessly mirror whatever is on my iPad to the TV.  I had a few issues getting everything set up.  Even though we have a staff-only wifi network, it was too congested and apps ran slowly/stuttered when I mirrored them.  I decided to use my iphone as a hotspot and connected both the Apple TV and the iPad to that.  It was an easy fix!

Byron Barton’s book apps developed by Oceanhouse Media are awesome so I used this as an opportunity to recommend them to the grown-ups in the room.  Today was a great day to use the Apple TV because I had about 60 people at storytime.  Mirroring it to the TV made what would have been a 10 inch by 8 inch book into a 4 foot by 3 foot book!

Felt Board:  “This Little Boat Went…”

I got the idea for this felt board (and the clip art!) from Sunflower Storytime.

“The first little boat went chug, chug, chug.
The second little boat went tug, tug, tug.
The third little boat went row, row, row.
The fourth little boat went oh sooo slooooow.
Here comes the sailboat, watch it go!”

Song:  “I’m Sitting in a Boat”

I learned this song from Jbrary‘s Youtube channel.  Since it isn’t a well known song, I put the lyrics up on the screen (using the iPad and a presentation app called Keynote) and asked the grown-ups to sing along with me.  Here’s what it looked like on the screen:

“I’m sitting in a boat and the boat is rocking, rocking, rocking.
I’m sitting in a boat and the boat is rocking, rocking, rocking.
I’m sitting in a boat and the waves are oh so high, oh so high
In the morning, oh oh oh!”

Credit:  This song was written and recorded by Debbie Carroll for her album “Up and Over the Moon:  Giggle, Dance and Cuddle Songs for the Very Young”.  You can purchase the CD from her website DebbieCarroll.com

Second Book:  Little Tug by Stephen Savage

Digital Pictures:  Anchors and Oil Tankers

Next I planned on doing a felt board activity with the kids involving an anchor and some oil tankers.  Those are pretty big words so I thought I’d use the iPad to show some images and expand their vocabularies and background knowledge!  I used the Keynote app for this too.  First I showed a picture of an anchor and briefly explained how they work.

Next I showed the kids a picture of an oil tanker and explained that they are huge ships!  Since they are so big they need really big anchors – around 10 feet tall, and they usually have more than one anchor for a ship that big! [this fact is courtesy of my dad who used to be a captain on cargo ships – thanks dad 🙂 ]

For the felt activity I cut out the outline of an oil tanker in four different colors.  I also cut out a cute little anchor.  I told the kids to close their eyes as I hid the anchor behind one of the oil tankers.  I asked them to guess where it was hidden and we recited this rhyme:

“Little anchor, little anchor
Are you underneath the blue oil tanker?”

I then lifted up the blue oil tanker to reveal if the anchor was there or not.  We played this a few times. Here’s the felt board:

Third Book:  Sheep on a Ship by Nancy Shaw

Felt Board:  Sailboat Colors

I got this idea from Storytime Katie.

“Riding around in my little red boat,
Riding around in my little red boat,
Riding around in my little red boat,
Zoom, zoom, zoom, zoom, Splash!”  (tune of 10 Little Indians)

I put up a different color sailboat for each verse.  We have a sailboat shaped die-cut so making the sailboats was super easy.

.

Ukulele Song:

We sang “Row, Row, Row Your Boat” as I played the melody on the ukulele.  I included some silly verses too:

“Row row row your boat, gently down the stream
Merrily merrily merrily merrily life is but a dream.
Row row row your boat gently down the stream,
If you see a crocodile, don’t forget to scream! AHH!!!!
Row row row your boat, gently to the shore,
If you see a lion there, don’t forget to ROAR!!!”

(credit: Sunflower Storytime)

Goodbye Song:

Tickle the clouds
Tickle your toes
Turn around
Tickle your nose
Reach down low
Reach up high
Storytime is over
So wave goodbye!

A Horse of Course!

This week we read stories about horses!

Rhyme Cube:  Click here for description.

Sign Language:  Word of the day was “Horse”

Opening Song:

“Open them, shut them,
Give a little clap!
Open them, shut them,
Now put them in your lap!”

First Book: Horses: Trotting! Prancing! Racing! by Patricia Hubbell

Felt Board:  I Gave My Horse an Apple

I gave my horse an apple, (pretend to give something)
And she gave me a neigh. (neigh)
I gave my horse a carrot, (pretend to give something)
And she moved her head this way. (move head up and down)
I gave my horse a sugar lump, (pretend to give something)
She gave me a smile. (smile big)
And then she took me for a ride,
For more than half a mile. (slap hands on thighs like galloping)

(credit: Storytime in a Box)

Fingerplay: 10 Galloping Horses

Ten galloping horses, (hold up ten fingers)
Came through town. (slap hands on legs like galloping)
Five were white, (hold up five fingers)
And five were brown. (hold up five fingers on other hand)
They galloped up, (slap up toward top of thighs)
They galloped down, (slap down toward knees)
Ten galloping horses, (hold up ten fingers)
Came through town. (slap hands on legs like galloping)

(credit: King County Library System)

Second Book:  Are You a Horse? by Andy Rash

Activity:  Giddy-Up!

I had all the kids stand up and pretend to hold onto reins.  I told them to gallop as we sang (to the tune of the William Tell Overture):

“Giddy-up, giddy-up, giddy-up-up-up!
Giddy-up, giddy-up, giddy-up-up-up!
Giddy-up, giddy-up, giddy-up-up-up!
WHOA, Horsie! ”  (we leaned back and paused on this part)

We sang the song a few times, getting faster and faster!

(credit: The Loudest Librarian)

Felt Board:  Colored Horses

I got this idea from Storytime Katie.  I laminated different colored horses, put a little velcro on the back, and gave one to each child.  I told them to wait until I called their color horse and then they could come up and put it on the board.  This is so hard for them!  It’s too exciting to wait! We did a similar activity last week with shells and this time they did honestly get a little better at waiting for their turn.  One little trick I do when a kid comes up with the wrong color is to say “Oh how cool! But your horse is yellow not blue.  Can you go show it to your grown-up until I call the yellow horses up?” This works some of the time!

Here’s the rhyme I came up with:

“If your horse is the color blue,
Gallop it on your shoe!
If you have a blue horse,
Come put it in the barn, of course!”

(yellow –  gallop it on your elbow
green – gallop it on your knee
purple – gallop it in a circle
red – gallop it on your head)

Third Book:  Clip-Clop by Nicola Smee

Ukulele:  She’ll Be Coming Round the Mountain

I printed out some clip art to go with each verse of the song and put it up on the wall before we sang.  We also counted the horses to make sure there were six!  The verses we sang were:

She’ll be coming round the mountain,…
She’ll be driving six white horses,…
She’ll be wearing pink pajamas,…
We’ll all come out and greet her,….

The chords I used can be found here.

I have no natural music ability and I make lots of mistakes but the kids seem to still enjoy it.  Jason Poole, a good friend and children’s librarian (who also happens to be a wonderful musician) told me that it’s good for kids to see you make mistakes.  It lets them know that adults aren’t perfect either and the important thing is to not give up!

Goodbye Song:

“Let’s tickle the clouds,
And tickle our toes,
And turn around,
And tickle our nose,
Reach down low,
Reach up high,
Storytime is over,
So wave goodbye!”

To the Beach!

I can’t stand the snow anymore!  We’ve had 72.7 inches in Rochester this winter so far.  So I decided to go with a beach themed storytime.  I thought about putting out beach towels for the kids to sit on but I don’t own enough.  Maybe next time I’ll ask the parents to bring their own – BYOBT!

Rhyme Cube: Click here for description.

Sign Language:  Word of the day was “Beach” and we repeated it often.

Opening Song:
“Open them, shut them,
Give a little clap!
Open them, shut them,
Now put them in your lap!”

First Book: All You Need For a Beach by Alice Schertle

Ukulele Song: I’ve been slowly learning how to play the ukulele and finally worked up the courage to try it out in some of my storytimes.  I know how to play the melody of Frere Jacques so I plucked it out while singing this version of the words:
“I see sea gulls
I see sea gulls,
At the beach,
At the beach,
Soaring, spinning, diving
Soaring, spinning, diving
At the beach,
At the beach.”

Felt Board:  5 Little Seashells

5 little seashells lying on the shore,
Swish! went the waves
and then there were four.

4 little seashells pretty as can be,
Swish! went the waves
and then there were three.

3 little seashells all pearly new,
Swish! went the waves
and then there were two.

2 little seashells lying in the sun,
Swish went the waves
and then there was one.

1 little seashell lying all alone,
I picked it up
and I took it home!

Second Book: Sea, Sand, and Me! by Patricia Hubbell

Song:

To the tune of Wheels on the Bus:
The waves on the sea go up and down, up and down, up and down
The waves on the sea go up and down all day long.
The shark in the sea goes snap, snap, snap…
The fish in the sea goes swish, swish, swish…
The boats on the sea go toot, toot, toot…

Felt Board: We’re Going to the Beach

I added got the idea for this felt board (and the clipart!) from Storytime Secrets. I put the pieces on the board as I recited the song.  I paused each time I put another piece up so the kids could shout out the correct word.

We’re going to the beach,
We’re going to the beach.
I think we’ll see some flip-flops there!
We’re going to the beach.

We’re going to the beach,
We’re going to the beach.
I think we’ll see a castle there!
We’re going to the beach.

We’re going to the beach,
We’re going to the beach.
I think we’ll see a starfish there!
We’re going to the beach.

We’re going to the beach,
We’re going to the beach.
I think we’ll see a beach ball there!
We’re going to the beach.

We’re going to the beach,
We’re going to the beach.
I think we’ll see a seashell there!
We’re going to the beach.

Third Book: Beach Day by Karen Roosa

Felt Board:  So Many Seashells

Next I passed out different colored felt seashells to each child and recited the following rhyme:
“There are so many shells in the hot, hot, sand.
What color shell is in my hand?
If you have a (color) shell, come on up and put on the sand!”

This task is very difficult for the littlest kids.  They want to come up right away and put their shell on the board instead of waiting for their color to be called.  So that inevitably happens but it is good practice for them to try to wait their turn.  Whether they wait for their turn or not it’s fun and our board looked like this:

Upcoming Presentation

I’ll be speaking at an upcoming tech camp on the topic of apps and iPads in children’s services.  There will also be presentations on the Central Library of Rochester’s YOUmedia lab and developing a Minecraft program for teens.  If you’re in the Western NY area, I hope you can join us!  Here’s a detailed description of the presentations and a link to register:

The Emerging Technologies Committee of the Monroe County Library System would like to invite you to our February Tech Camp – Programming the Digital Way.  It will be held on Friday, February 7th from 2pm – 5pm at the Brighton Memorial Library.

This Tech Camp will be entirely dedicated to Children’s and Teen Technology Services.

Apps and eBooks in Storytimes and Library Programs
Tablets have been revolutionizing education, and libraries are close behind! Learn how to easily implement apps and ebooks into the traditional library storytime structure. Exciting and low cost library programs using educational apps and games will also be covered.

Central Library’s YOUmedia
Get a sneak peek at the Central Library’s YOUmedia teen and tween digital lab space. See how teens can use technology for creative self-expression through digital media with video creation, audio production, and digital photography.

Minecraft
Minecraft is a popular new online game that allows players to build and share immense creations such as buildings, structures, and geographic landscapes. It’s the 21st Century’s answer to Legos. Learn how libraries are using Minecraft to connect with children, tweens, and teens, and promote fun collaborative projects using library technology.

We hope that you can join us – please register for this Tech Camp.